Meghan Trainor, in the words of a recent TikTok hate comment, is “all treble, no bass.” Lizzo is a diet culture “sell-out.” Adele, called out by fans for her 100-pound drop in 2022, is “fatphobic.” Clearly, people are thrown off by these pop stars’ recent dramatic body transformations.
As fans, we see these celebrities’ weight loss journeys as a betrayal of their curvy queen attitude: explicit unapologetic acceptance of their larger bodies. If body positivity means always being happy with the way you look, then a celebrity’s pursuit of substantial weight loss is inconsistent with calling herself body positive, right? Actually, the two are not mutually exclusive. No celebrity owes us a long-term commitment to a plus-size body to continue to preach values of body positivity.
A celebrity’s body often comprises a key component of their artistic brand. Meghan Trainor’s most career-defining song, “All About That Bass,” is literally all about her “bass” (bigger body) and learning to love it unconditionally. For plus-size celebrities in particular, the conflation between body and brand is especially pressured. Because their body so obviously sticks out from the socially accepted beauty standard, acknowledging their fatness is less of a choice.
A scene from 2012’s Pitch Perfect illustrates this best: when first introduced, Rebel Wilson’s character refers to herself as “Fat Amy” so “twig bitches like you don’t do it behind my back.” In other words, plus-size celebrities may opt to preemptively embrace their fatness — whether or not they are actually happy with their weight — in an attempt to limit body beration from the public.
Plus-size celebrities lean into their fatness as a means of protection, but a society obsessed with diet culture misattributes having a large body as a necessary qualification for the practice of body positivity.
So — like with Meghan Trainor, Lizzo and Adele — the first sign of weight loss causes people to jump to ‘hypocrite’ accusations. A plus-size celebrity’s appearance is so forcibly tied to their career trajectory that any obvious physical changes inspire fans to critique their authenticity.
Society likes to overgeneralize that plus-size celebrities lose weight solely for aesthetic appeal, but this harmful simplification lacks holistic consideration. Meghan Trainor said her weight-loss journey helped her discover newfound strength and life balance after giving birth. Lizzo said that working out saved her mental health and alleviated her unbearable back pain. Adele said that incorporating regular exercise habits helped her cope with crippling anxiety.
These pop stars didn’t shed pounds to blindly adhere to societal beauty standards. They adopted lifestyle changes in order to feel healthier and more comfortable in their skin. They may look different, but this doesn’t inherently mean their values have been compromised.
Beyond the superficiality of looks, body positivity emphasizes wellness and functionality. It means having the courage to listen to your body’s needs and respond to them; it allows for growth and change. Shape and size are relevant but only part of the definition — body positivity also encompasses race, gender, sexuality and physical ability.
True body positivity is a praxis that we must uphold amidst the larger fight against structural inequality, inspired by fat activists and women of color in the 1960s and 1970s. As Lizzo put it in her recent Women’s Health feature, “body positivity is the radical act of daring to exist loudly and proudly in a society that told you you shouldn’t exist.” Body positivity is a mindset, an approach and a movement, independent of one’s physical appearance.
Celebrities can represent body positivity regardless of their weight or history with weight loss.
Take Taylor Swift: strutting across stadium stages in skin-tight bedazzled bodysuits, unapologetically inserting herself in the male-dominated football scene, boldly standing up for her bodily autonomy in court when it is violated. She shows up with confidence and tenacity, values that the size of her body does not determine. Now consider Adele: consistently exposing herself emotionally through raw and vulnerable lyrics, bravely confronting her anxiety and prioritizing her health after crushing heartbreak, maintaining confidence in her choices despite public scrutiny.
Adele stated she was “body positive then, and I’m body positive now.” Her values were never dictated by her size.
At the end of the day, Meghan Trainor, Lizzo, Adele and others with similar stories have had to tune out the noise and reflect on what is best for their well-being. Prioritizing self-love is a practice of body positivity. They opted to undergo major weight loss journeys, a personal and private decision that I respect, and their fans should too. A celebrity’s body is not indicative of their belief system. To anyone feeling butthurt over Meghan Trainor’s lack of “bass” or Lizzo losing some “Juice”: butt out! Why must Adele’s weight hold so much weight? Her butt, her business — no ifs, ands or buts about it!
Joelle Rudolf SC ’28 is a self-proclaimed “diet culture dropout.” She is tired of society’s obsession with weight, and hopes one day we can place a similarly silly level of importance on more interesting traits like juggling ability or having a flawless moonwalk worthy of MJ reincarnation.